Friday, September 25, 2015

Drawing Boards....

I know I've had all of you who come to this blog wondering what has been going on.

"What's this dude's deal? He hasn't said anything in MONTHS!"

Yep. And you wanna know why? I've been waiting and watching for something of note to come down the pike. No, not Jeff Jarrett taking over the company again because we all know that was only a ploy to get him to sign over what precious little of the company he owned so that those votes for the direction of the company are back in the hands holding all the cards.

In fact, aside from all the negative press TNA has gotten in the past few months, I've actually enjoyed most of what I've seen on Impact. Sure, I would have changed the results of Lethal Lockdown to see the return of AJ Styles putting Dixie Carter's "you're lucky to have played on this stage" speech back in the awful mouth from whence it came, but all in all, I can't really complain.

The truth of the matter is....I'm just not 'wowed' anymore. Do I still watch? Whenever I can. Do I still root for TNA to make a rise? Absolutely. But do I see it coming from the lady running the show? Not anymore. The fact is, without a rebranding, the current stigma attached to TNA is toxic to anyone associated with it now. I'm almost ashamed to phrase it that way, but Dixie has spent far too much time and money on cards that simply won't ever win the game.

I've stayed silent to see if there is anything to be said that could change the landscape and the fact is, TNA is not doing enough to warrant the extension they seek from Destination America, to whom they gave either assurances or allowed them to believe that the audience would grow, but it simply hasn't, which isn't necessarily TNA's fault, but they've not done enough to garner the kind of trust the deal requires in order make a TV deal lucrative....hence being pulled from outside markets and channels.

Kurt Angle is leaving sometime after Bound for Glory, meaning a BIG hole apparent to anyone who hasn't been living under a rock for the past decade. Combine that with the potential losses of the Hardys and you've got a big problem from which I've become skeptical that TNA can realistically recover from. Yeah, it's only 3 men, but these account for a GIANT piece of TNA's promotional material, not to mention merchandise sales. Jeff Hardy has been TNA's John Cena for nearly as long as Angle has been there and is, without any visible competitor, the biggest merch mover for the company.

I haven't sounded the death bells yet, just in case you're wondering. I have a few ideas of how they can pull something together WITHOUT using an invasion or another stable to garner heat.

1. Spend money on one former name.
2. Have this person calling members of the current roster.
3. Put together a kind of tournament that Dixie will HAVE to be present for.
4. Create a main event involving the entire roster like a Lumberjack Match.
5. Introduce this member right as the bell rings to start the main event. This little part HAS to be written out VERY clearly. This person orchestrates a walkout. Every member has a copy of their contracts, which they lay into a bin on their way out the door.

6. The member of this roster now becomes the sole voice of the workers who demand a rebirth of the product, something groundbreaking, something bigger and more important. TNA becomes something else, maybe even something as simple as Impact Wrestling and dropping the entire TNA name entirely.

This is just one idea, but it's entirely based on a shock factor that just isn't there anymore. Would anyone care enough to give it a watch?